Safe Schools Summit helps migrant families support LGBT youth

More than 50 migrant families crowded into the Saturday workshop to learn more about how to make school a safer place for LGBT youth.

CRLA's Proyecto Poderoso (Powerful Project) continues to break down boundaries in migrant communities with its LGBT youth and parent summits. The latest Safe School Summit, hosted in late March in El Centro, was a milestone for Proyecto Poderoso - it was the first summit conducted entirely en Español for Spanish-speaking attendees.

More than 50 migrant families crowded into the Saturday workshop to learn more about how to make school a safer place for LGBT youth. Topics ranged from bullying to legal rights to community resources, and participants were excited to discuss their experiences in a supportive community setting. The event generated press coverage in the Spanish-language newspaper El Sol del Valle.

School can be a difficult and dangerous environment for LGBT youth, and bilingual youth are often already at a disadvantage. "CRLA is committed to helping Spanish-speaking families support the LGBT youth in their lives and assert their children's rights," says staff attorney Dan Torres, the Project's director. "By partnering with the community we're doing essential education, but we're also learning from them about what tools they need to be successful."

This CRLA Summit was co-sponsored with the Imperial County Migrant Education Program and the Health Initiative of the Americas. Speakers included experts from CRLA, UC San Diego, UC Berkeley, Access to Independence, Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), and Gay Straight Lesbian Educators Network (GLSEN). Thanks to everyone who organized the event and everyone who attended.

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